Snowboards have become very popular sport boards in the last 20 years, approaching other sport boards, such as surfboards, in popularity. Snowboards (e.g. see U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,320,378 and 5,299,823) are typically constructed by laminating sheets of material together using adhesives and pressure. Due to the extremely hard use conditions that the boards are typically subjected to, delamination and gouges are common. Snowboard manufacturers have attempted to minimize this problem by adding aluminum plates and/or rivets to the nose and tail portions of the snowboard. While this is helped somewhat in preventing delamination, metal plates and rivets also have added excess weight which appears to adversely affect the performance of the boards, and the expense of these solutions has been significant. Therefore it has long been desirable to provide a solution to the delamination problem that does not adversely affect the board performance characteristics, and is not particularly expensive, and also can be added by the ultimate consumer if a board is purchased that does not have suitable protection.
According to the present invention a protective tip cover is provided for the nose (forward tip), the tail (rear tip), or both of a snowboard. The protective tip cover according to the present invention does not adversely affect the performance characteristics of the board, and in fact it actually enhances the functionality of the board in some respects. A protective tip cover according to the invention can also be replaced if severely damaged or worn and is highly versatile, being utilizable in a wide variety of different snowboards with different nose curvatures and "kick" (the upward bend of the snowboard at the nose and tail).
Adhesively secured plastic protective nose covers for surfboards and other types of water sport boards are known in the art. For example an early configuration of a surfboard nose bumper which minimizes scratching of the surfboard if it should impact sand or rocks is shown in U.S. Pat. No. 3,374,495. Another type of water board protective tip which is designed primarily to protect the user as opposed to the board is shown in U.S. Pat. No. 5,174,220 (the disclosure of which is hereby incorporated by reference herein). However the particular configurations and materials for these water sport board protective tip covers are unusable in snowboards. Snowboards are subjected to much greater abuse, and are typically used at low temperatures, below 0.degree. C., and interact with the snow in a much different manner than a surfboard--or other water sport board--interacts with the water.
According to the present invention a protective tip cover for a snowboard is provided which prevents or greatly minimizes the possibility of delamination of the snowboard tips, but does so without significantly adversely affecting the performance characteristics of the board--in fact enhancing the board characteristics to a certain extent--and in a cost-effective manner.
According to one aspect of the present invention the protective tip cover comprises: An integral body of abrasion resistant, impact energy absorbing elastomeric plastic which remains abrasion resistant and energy absorbing at temperatures below 0.degree. C. at which a snowboard would typically be used. And, the body having a channel shaped cross section interior surface, and a rounded exterior surface front portion, an external top and bottom, and an arcuate plan configuration having an arcuate extent of about 150-190.degree. from a first end thereof to a second end thereof.
The body has a central portion between the first and second ends thereof defining the arcuate extent, and the bottom is substantially flat and the top has--at least at the central portion thereof (and typically extending around most, but not the entire amount, of the arcuate extent thereof)--a ridge facilitating grasping of the tip cover when on a snowboard, and providing additional "kick" to the snowboard. ["Kick" prevents the board from digging into the snow when being ridden.] The body front portion is thickest at the central portion, and substantially gradually tapers in thickness from the central portion to the first and second ends thereof At least one (and preferably three) generally V-shaped cutouts are formed in and substantially completely through the top and bottom of the body (but not the front portion) to facilitate adaptation of the protective tip cover to almost any type of conventional snowboard. Each cutout has first and second edge portions with an angle therebetween of at least about 20.degree., and when three cutouts are provided the first cutout is at the central portion and side cutouts are each about 40-50.degree. (preferably about 45.degree.) from the first cutout around the arcuate plan configuration, and the first cutout edge portions define a larger angle (e.g. about 30.degree.) therebetween than the side cutout edge portions (e.g. about 20.degree.).
The body is preferably of an elastomeric plastic having an abrasion resistance according to ASTM D 1044 (H-22 Wheel) of less than 10, e.g. about 3. One particularly suitable material for the elastomeric plastic is polytetramethylene glycol ether polyurethane. One commercially available form of this material is Dow Chemical Corporation's "Pellethane 2103-70A" polyurethane elastomer. This has a durometer of about 70-75 on the Shore A scale, good low temperature flexibility, good impact resistance, low compression set, high compression strength, good transparency, and is available in a wide range of colors.
The protective tip cover according to the present invention is adhered to the nose--or to the tail--of a snowboard using any suitable structural adhesive which is typically applied to the board after the board has been cleaned, and the tip cover then placed into contact with the adhesive. The tip cover when in combination with the snowboard does not significantly adversely affect the performance characteristics of the board, but--as indicated earlier--provides additional "kick" in addition to protecting the board from delamination. Also, the very slight increase in weight (40 grams) provided by a protective tip cover according to the present invention which is disposed on the nose of a snowboard (less than the weight of aluminum plates) may reduce the frequency of vibrations at high speeds for certain boards, reducing undesirable "chatter" and even perhaps slightly increasing the performance characteristics.
The bottom of the protective tip is substantially flat (flatter than the top) to provide better glide over snow, ice, and like surface on which the snowboard is typically used. The outer ends and edges are preferably tapered to about 0.015 inches so that the protective tip cover will fit flush with the snowboard surfaces, preventing the edges from getting caught on sharp objects and creating drag. The front portion (that exterior of the board edge) is thicker than the top and bottom because it will be subjected to the greatest amount of impact, and the front portion is thickest at the central portion (gradually tapering in thickness toward the ends as described above) since the central portion will be subjected to the most direct impacts in normal operating circumstances.
According to another aspect of the present invention, an adhesive system has also been developed for use with the protective tip cover to facilitate its application to snowboards. The adhesive system according to the invention is novel for protective tip covers for sport boards in general, however, and is not limited to snowboards. Typically, when tip covers are applied to surfboards, windsurfing boards, and the like--as described in the aforementioned U.S. Pat. No. 3,374,495 and 5,174,220--the adhesive is applied directly to the board, or applied in liquid form inside the protective tip, and then the protective tip cover is placed over the adhesive and pressed down into place until the adhesive dries. However some users are not patient enough to properly apply the adhesive and tip cover in these ways, and would like a more simplified system. The system according to the invention is more simplified, while still providing good adhesion between the protective tip cover and the sport board with which it is utilized (including surfboards, bodyboards, windsurfing boards, or other water sport boards, snowboards, or other sport boards).
According to this, other, aspect of the present invention a protective tip cover for a sport board is provided comprising: An integral body of energy absorbing elastomeric plastic the body having a channel shaped cross section interior surface, and a rounded exterior surface front portion, an external top and bottom. And, disposed within the channel shaped interior, a tie coat for tieing an adhesive to the body; a pressure sensitive adhesive engaging and adhered to the tie coat, and a release sheet engaging the adhesive; the adhesive having properties which will provide secure adhesion of the body to a snowboard, surfboard, bodyboard, windsurfing board, or other sport board.
In a preferred embodiment according to this aspect of the invention, the pressure sensitive adhesive is in the form of a double-face tape with a first face thereof engaging the tie coat and with a second face thereof engaging the release sheet. For example the tie coat may comprise three 3M Primer #94 and the tape may comprise 3M #9473. The tie coat (often alternatively referred to as a "primer") may also be applied to the first adhesive face of the tape to act as a lubricant to allow the tape to slide into the body channel-shaped interior, particularly for water sport board tip covers which are smaller than snowboard tip covers. The tip cover produced according to this aspect of the present invention is extremely simple and easy to use. One merely pulls off the release sheet from the second face of the adhesive tape, then deforms the tip cover as necessary to properly fit on the sport board nose (or tail), and then presses the adhesive into place.
The invention also relates to a method of assembling the protective tip cover described above for a surfboard protective tip cover (or other small tip covers), comprising the steps of applying the tie coat as a lubricant to the first face of the tape, and then inserting the tape into the channel shaped interior of the tip cover.
It is the primary object of the present invention to provide effective prevention of delamination of snowboards, and an effective system for attaching protective tip covers to sport boards. This and other objects of the invention will become clear from an inspection of the detailed description of the invention and from the appended claims.